The Espanyol trench

It's Espanyol 's turn. We must acknowledge that their fans have a much higher threshold of suffering than average. The "perico" is so accustomed to living with chronic pain that they don't even feel it anymore. Disdained by the overwhelming majority of Barcelona fans and often treated as outsiders by the Catalan media, the blue and whites subsist on bread and water in their own particular trench. They fight against everything and everyone. So much so that their list of enemies often includes themselves.

I've randomly asked a few Barcelona fans these days whether they'd prefer Espanyol to stay in the First Division or be relegated. The reader already knows the answer: most have naturally replied that the pericos' place is in hell. There's nothing to be surprised about. Nor is there anything unusual, even if we pretend to be offended, about Barça not being able to naturally celebrate a league title at the RCDE Stadium. Let's ask football for what it can give us and leave the hugs between close strangers for Christmas. What bothers Espanyol most is its devilish stubbornness in not bowing down to the giant and believing it has the right to continue addressing Barcelona fans as "you", despite its undisguised inferiority on all fronts. It would be a different story if its behavior were that of a resigned supporting actor in the royal entourage of the Blaugrana. If, instead of being proud and haughty, he were conformist and submissive, Barcelona fans could be understanding, affectionate, and charitable toward him. However, since the Pericos are like any fan base, that is, naturally insolent, they achieve what they ultimately aim for: to get the enemy to pay some attention to them. Barcelona's ultimate victory would be to fulfill Gracia's maxim that there is no greater contempt than the lack of appreciation. The betrayal of this maxim by the Culés is, on the contrary, Espanyol's greatest triumph.

Read also There will be few of us culés who will celebrate Espanyol staying in the First Division.

All of this is so antipoetic that Albert Espinosa couldn't even write a line with this material. But what can we do if this is how love works? We Barça fans who sincerely wish Espanyol the best (hypocrites and those who do well don't count) are in the minority. And to tell the truth, those of us who reason this way don't really know why we do it, since it's clearly an unnatural feeling. Perhaps it's just the vanity of believing ourselves to be ungregarious and superior for having our own ideas outside the group to which we belong. Or who knows why. But the truth is that there will be few of us culés celebrating Espanyol's stay in the First Division. As few as the pericos happy with Barça's double. Tied stingily, as it should be.